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A former consultant indicted alongside the mayors of Reading and Allentown and convicted of trading city contracts for campaign cash has been sentenced to 18 months in prison.

Fifty-five-year-old James Hickey was sentenced Wednesday in federal court after pleading guilty in December to honest services wire fraud and mail fraud.

Prosecutors said he helped steer a $3 million Allentown street light contract to a client after campaign contributions and conspired to rig bids for a Reading contract.

Hickey told the judge that he regretted his actions and had "taken ownership and responsibility" for them.

“This was textbook pay-to-play, and this defendant played it brazenly,” U.S. Attorney William McSwain said in a statement. “He corrupted the contracting process of each city and left no room for an honest evaluation of contracts for the benefit of the citizens. Under these circumstances, we believe the prison sentence was absolutely justified.”

Former Allentown mayor Ed Pawlowski awaits sentencing on convictions including bribery, attempted extortion and lying to the FBI. He stepped down after a dozen years, and a former council president now serves as acting mayor.

Along with Hickey, former Reading Mayor Vaughn D. Spencer and former Reading School Board President Rebecca Acosta were indicted in bribery and pay-to-play schemes, facing charges including bribery, conspiracy and fraud in the Reading case.

Acosta pleaded not guilty in July. Spencer pleaded not guilty in August.